But Watkins knew what she was getting into. "Even before being on the council, I sat in on council
meetings, and I've seen things go on that I wasn't pleased with as a citizen,
and I became even more concerned as a council member, and I felt like I could
make difference, so I decided to run," she said at city hall before a November 20 council meeting

And Watkins seems confident that the people of Brighton
-- despite the challenges they face -- can work together, make the town a
cleaner, more attractive place and, eventually, pay off their huge debt -- even
if a bit of divine guidance is required.

"With God, all things are possible," Watkins said. "I'm a
strong believer in the powers of prayer, and I believe that God is able to do
anything but fail. And with the citizens, along with the mayor and the council,
working together, we can accomplish much."

The new mayor also expresses her belief in the new city
council and their willingness to work with her. "I have all the confidence in
the world that we are going to do whatever is necessary," she said. "And we're
going to have an open-door policy, something we've never had before."

Brighton discovered in early 2011 that taxes had been
withheld from the paychecks of city employees for about seven years, but that
the money had not been sent to the IRS. The discrepancy was found by city clerk
Hazel Williams, and the city hired forensic accountants to begin to assess the
damage.

Former Mayor Angelo Hinkle said he had no idea what
happened to the money or who was responsible for the non-payment, which began
during Cooper's administration. In April 2012, Hinkle blamed LaSonya Walker,
who served as city clerk from 2005 to 2009. Walker, in turn, blamed Hinkle.

In any case, it is Watkins who is left to clean up the
mess, and she wishes that prior administrations had been more proactive in
assessing the city's financial state.

"When we came into office in 2008, I felt that we should
have sat down and looked at everything the city owed and start to work from
there, instead of letting things pile up," Watkins said. "Just because the
other mayor (Cooper) didn't do it, and just because this past mayor (Hinkle)
didn't do it, doesn't mean that I should not do it. So I will do everything in
my power to correct as much as I can."

During the council meeting, the first since Watkins and
the new council took office, Annie Woods (Place 3) said that the finance
committee she chairs will do what it can to put the city's books in order. "I
just would like to say to our citizens that the finance committee, right now we
are trying to get the figures and see where we're at so we can start paying
some on bills, and we are devoted to trying to get our city in shape and get
our bills paid, so you all just bear with us."

"Not only bear with us, work with us," Watkins
interjected, to laughter from the council and a few of the 15 or so Brighton
residents in attendance.

This apparent can-do attitude and spirit of cooperation
do not mean the way forward will be easy, of course.

"There are some things that we may have to do that we
might not necessarily like to do, might not be comfortable with everybody, but
some changes have to be made," Watkins said before the meeting. "And we are
going to deal with them one step at the time. We didn't get into this mess by
ourselves. These new council members weren't involved, and a few of the old
ones didn't agree, but we are still a part of it."

Does the new mayor expect any budget cuts or cuts in city
services?

"We've already cut to the bone," she said. "Basically,
what I'm asking our people to do is to do some volunteering, and some have
agreed to do some volunteer work to get us back where we need to be, to get
afloat."

She said that she was referring both to Brighton
residents and city employees when invoking this spirit of voluntarism. "People
in the community, they are willing to work, and some of the employees are
willing to come in and help out," she said.

Hinkle announced in May that the city would attempt to
secure a bank loan, perhaps for as much as $1 million, in order to pay off the
IRS. However, that effort "fell through," according to Watkins, who says she
never thought it was a viable strategy.

"When you look at your finances, and the finances of the
city are similar to the finances you have at home, if you don't have a stable
credit rating, you can't borrow money," she said. "No one will loan you any. We
didn't have the credibility to go to the bank and say, 'We need X numbers of
dollars.' It was something that the Internal Revenue [Service] said that we
should do to put forth an effort, but I knew that it was impossible. If you
don't pay your bills, you get a credit rating below a certain point, and a city
credit rating has to be much higher than that of an average person."

Some citizens in Brighton have argued -- as recently as
2010 and 2011-- that the city should seek to be annexed by Birmingham, but
don't expect to see Watkins leading any such effort.

"I didn't like the idea in the beginning," she said. "And
you can't change the way people think. Each person has their own opinion. But
mine is, use what you got. Again, God is able. If we are good stewards over
what he's blessed with with, then we can survive."

Watkins does not see the idea of annexation as a panacea
for her cash-strapped city. "Number one, when you're in the type of debt that
we're in, nobody wants to come in and pay your bills for you," she said.

As far as opportunities for growth for Brighton, Watkins
said that the community's proximity to heavily traveled I-59 is a plus.
However, she said that there are aesthetic concerns that prevent the city from
seizing this opportunity.

"The positive side is that we have the interstate at our
disposal," she said. "We can use that to our advantage, but our priority is to
get the city clean. Nobody wants to come into a city that dilapidated and
rubbish everywhere, so first let's clean up, because you don't invite anyone
into your dirty house."

There was a volunteer-led community clean-up effort in
Brighton in May, called "Take Pride City Wide." According to Watkins, she took
part in this effort, has stayed in touch with the organizers and expects their
efforts to continue.

In another positive step, the city's community and senior
center has reopened. The facility, located at 3810 Seventh Avenue, was closed
in 2011 when the city ran out of money to operate it. The council voted this
summer to reopen the center, but that was contingent upon the city verifying
that it had the liability insurance it needed.

"We've taken care of that," Watkins said. "The community
center is now operational." According to the mayor, the city can now rent out
the facility and make some money. "That's one of the resources we will be
using," she said.

At the council meeting, council member Rhonda Bean (Place 2), chair
of the Community Development committee, echoed Watkins's concern about
Brighton's appearance and its impact on possible development. "I'm not going to
move my family and my business into a dirty city," Bean said. "We've got to do
some clean-up."

She urged the mayor and council, at their next work
session, to discuss the steps necessary to reopen the town's environmental
court, which was used to put teeth in city ordinances meant to force people to keep
their property clean, cut their grass and weeds, and avoid leaving old cars,
refrigerators and other junk lying around town.

Watkins told Bean that she was already working with a
judge on restoring the environmental court and hoped that it would be back in
operation by spring 2013.

Council member Landy Warren offered a report from the
streets and sanitation department that also focused on cleaning up the city.
"As soon as we get out people in place, we will try to clean up and get to
everybody who has a problem," he said. "I do have a list I'm writing up of the
streets that need to be touched on ASAP, and I will present that to our mayor
the next meeting. And we will get all street signs that are down into place."

Several of the residents who spoke at the meeting
expressed a desire to support clean-up efforts in town. One middle-aged woman,
in response to Bean's comments, said. "I know Brighton used to be a beautiful
city, and I believe we can do it again.' She also offered to volunteer. "I'm
not not as young as I used to be, but I'll do what I can do."

Among other items of business discussed, the council
unanimously approved and, just before the end of the meeting, swore in a new
police chief, Anthony Farley.

Members also voted unanimously to keep a few city
employees in their current jobs: Fire Chief Sebastian Corillo, Magistrate Ebony
Bates, City Clerk Williams and Bessie Bailey, who acts as Williams's assistant.

There was no decision on a new city attorney, though
Watkins said she has spoken to one strong candidate. She and the council agreed
to meet with this individual, and any other candidates contacted by other
council members, Monday, November 26. Watkins noted the urgency of hiring an
attorney. "We can't really function and do the things we need to do without an
attorney," she said.